Rosslyn Chapel

On our last day in Edinburgh it absolutely poured rain.  We had to go and collect a hire car.  Once we had done that we set off away from Edinburgh towards North Berwick where we were staying for a night on the way to Bamburgh.

Colin suggested we go and visit the Rosslyn Chapel on the way.

Founded in 1446, as the Collegiate Church of St Matthew, Rosslyn Chapel today attracts visitors from far and wide, drawn by its unique and mysterious carvings and the beauty of its setting.

The chapel took some 40 years to build and its ornate stonework and mysterious symbolism have inspired - and intrigued – artists and visitors ever since. Today, there are countless theories, myths and legends associated with the Chapel, many of which are impossible to prove or disprove conclusively

Rosslyn Chapel’s beautiful stonework is incredible. But perhaps the highlight is the Apprentice Pillar. Yet the story behind this pillar isn’t so lovely, it’s actually a little scary. Here’s the condensed version of the tale.

While building the chapel, the master mason went to Rome for inspiration. He entrusted his apprentice to follow his instructions until his return. Yet the apprentice was an ambitious young man, so he started changing the designs and created this pillar himself.

If you thought this would impress the master mason, you’re gravely mistaken. When the master mason saw this beautiful the pillar, he was enraged by jealousy. He struck down the apprentice in rage and killed him.

No one knows if this is fact or fiction. But there’s some evidence supporting the story.

Firstly, there’s a carving of a young man with a mysterious cut on his forehead, possibly signifying the dead apprentice. And secondly, the history books tell us chapel construction was delayed at one point because of a violent deed.

The chapel has also been made more famous by the Dan Brown novel and subsequent movie The Da Vinci Code.

We attended a short talk about the chapel and learned that prior to the film about 30,000 visitors a year came to the chapel and since the book and movie about 75,000 people every six months visit the chapel.

We were expecting a quiet chapel in a rural location.  Well, the rural location is correct but when we arrived there was a huge visitor carpark, a visitor centre with café and gift shop.

The chapel was definitely worth a visit.  It cost 7 pounds pp to visit and worth every cent.  The volunteer guide who gave the talk was great and she told us the story of the apprentice and pointed out a few other interesting carvings.

A 10 minute walk down a country lane is a ruined castle and we decided to wander along and a look.  All that is left is one column but is rather beautiful, set in a very picturesque rural location.  It can only be reached on foot.

Colin outside Rosslyn Chapel

Me at the ruin or Rosslyn Castle

edinburgh

Our final museum for the day was the Scottish National Museum.

The diverse collections take you on a journey of discovery through the history of Scotland and around the world, taking in the wonders of nature, art, design and fashion and science and technology – all under one roof. We spent many hours in there.

Inside of Museum

Fashion Exibit 

View of the Castle from rooftop garden of Museum

Us on rooftop of Museum

Edinburgh

We decided to have a museum day and we began the day with a visit to the

Museum of Childhood.  It was very interesting.  Childrens toys and games from Victorian times to the present day.  It is the first museum in the world dedicated to the history of childhood.  scary though when you recognise toys and games from your own childhood.

We then visited the Edinburgh Museum dedicated to the history of Edinburgh and housed in 16^th century buildings.

Centuries of Edinburgh’s history from the Old and New towns. Highlights including the National Covenant of 1638, which led to civil war and the collar and bowl of Greyfriars Bobby, the Skye terrier whose dogged devotion to his dead master touched the hearts of many and inspired numerous books and film adaptations. 

The Museum also houses spectacular collections of decorative art which reveal a rich history of Scottish craftsmanship, from beautifully cut and engraved glass and intricately made silver from Edinburgh and Canongate, costume, longcase clocks, along with Scottish pottery and Scottish porcelain dating from the 1760s.

On our way to the Scottish Parliament we visited Canongate Kirk.  This is the church visited by the royal family when they are in Edinburgh.  At the front of the church is the Royal pew.  Zara Phillips was married in this church.  It is a lovely church painted in a pale blue colour.

We then went on to explore the Scottish Parliament.  Scotland's Parliament sits at the foot of Edinburgh's famous Royal Mile in front of the spectacular Holyrood Park and Salisbury Crags. Constructed from a mixture of steel, oak, and granite, the complex building was hailed on opening as one of the most innovative designs in Britain today.

Drawing inspiration from the surrounding landscape, the flower paintings by Charles Rennie Mackintosh and the upturned boats on the seashore, Enric Miralles, one of the world's premier architects, developed a design that he said was a building "growing out of the land".

The building is not everyone’s cup of tea but I happen to love it, especially the debating chamber with its beautiful wood, glass and steel.

On the ground floor was a temporary photographic exhibition of world events, some of which were very confronting such as terror attacks in London.

Cannongate Kirk

royal pew

The royal pew

Scottish Parliament

Outside the Scottish Parliament

tombstone of Greyfriars Bobby

Statue of Greyfriars bobby

Edinburgh

At the end of our time in York we returned our hire car to the local depot and took a train to Edinburgh.  The reason being we felt a car was not necessary in Edinburgh and parking would be expensive.

We stayed in a hotel for 4 nights in Edinburgh right in the heart of the city a couple of minutes walk from the railway station so not far to carry our bags and just around the corner from the Royal Mile.

The train trip from York took 2 1/2 hours and was very scenic hugging the coast.  We saw Lindisfarne and Holy Island and lots of coastline as the train travelled along.

For our first day in Edinburgh we bought tickets on the hop on hop off bus so we could orientate ourselves with the city.  Each of the buses had a live commentary from a local guide which was very entertaining.

The Edinburgh Fringe festival and the Royal Military Tattoo were on at the same time.  Meaning of course lots of visitors and lots of things to see and do.

Many months ago I bought tickets to the Military Tattoo for my birthday.  So I have been waiting for a long time to see it.  

Taking place on the Esplanade of the Castle.  The show was amazing.  It rained a little during the day but by evening the sun was out and the sky was blue.  There was no rain at all during the performance.

The performance began with a flyover of two fighter jets.  A nod to the Royal Air Force's 100 years celebrations.  This years theme was the sky's the limit.

One of my favourite performances was Switzerlands top secret Drum Corps.  they are amazing.

Almost 1,000 musicians, pipers, drummers, singers and dancers perform at the Tattoo.

This unforgettable event is brought to an emotional and poignant close each evening as a lone piper, spot lit high on the castle ramparts, plays a haunting lament. Fireworks, a mass chorus of Auld Lang Syne from the audience. What a show!

Here's just some of about 100 photos I took during the performance.

Us waiting for the show to begin

Switzerlands Top Secret Drum Corps

The Lone Piper

F

York - Moors and Dales

We did a day trip from York to take in the Moors and Dales and visit the town of Haworth.

Our first stop is at the Bingley Five Rise Locks where we saw the highest Staircase Lock in the UK, a spectacular feat of engineering constructed in 1774 as part of the Leeds and Liverpool Canal.  We were fortunate in that there were quite a few narrow boats in the canal using the locks and we watched them navigate through the locks.

We then arrived in Haworth which is on the edge of the rugged Pennine Moors, where the Bronte family lived from 1820 and the sisters wrote their famous novels. We visited the Bronte Parsonage Museum and the Bronte Memorial Chapel in the nearby Church where their father preached, and afterwards explored the quaint shops on the cobbled main street which is extremely steep.  

We left Haworth and headed up Penistone Hill for a photo stop to admire the moorland views towards Top Withens, where the Bronte Sisters walked to gain inspiration, before heading north into Wharfedale in the Yorkshire Dales National Park.

We stopped briefly in the picturesque, traditional Dales village of Linton.  We had time to wander around and look at the almshouses and the river.

The next stop was Bolton Abbey, where we were able to explore the Priory Church and ruins of the 12th Century Augustinian Priory in its beautiful riverside setting, There was also an opportunity to take the stepping stones challenge if you are feeling more adventurous.  It looked a bit perilous to me.  It was also very crowded with people.

We left Bolton Abbey to visit the nearby Embsay & Bolton Abbey Steam Railway (as seen on “Great Railway Journeys” with Michael Portillo), where we took a steam train ride through the picturesque Yorkshire Dales scenery between Bolton Abbey and Embsay Stations.

We drove back to York via Harrogate and Wetherby.

Five Locks at Bingley

Inside the Bronte Parsonage

Main Street of Haworth

Penistone Hill

Linton

Bolton Abbey

In the graveyard these "tables" represent the Last Supper

Aboard the steam train